MAVLink Router is an open-source application to distribute MAVLink messages between multiple endpoints (connections). It distributes packets to a single port or multiple endpoints depending on the target address. Connections can be made via UART, UDP or TCP (see the endpoints chapter for details). For the EchoPilot AI, the most common application is to to accept data from the serial port (e.g. on /dev/ttyTHS0) (or /dev/ttyTHS1 on some Jetson devices) and forward it to a ground control system over the network using either UDP or TCP (supporting both client and server configurations).
This repository provides a makefile to easily install mavlink-router on a Jetson running on the EchoPilot AI hardware. It also sets up a service mavlink-router to start at boot.
You must have an internet connection from the Jetson module to complete this install. Please refer to these instructions: https://echomav.github.io/docs/Rev1/echopilot_ai/#configure-the-network
Gain console access to the Jetson module installed on the EchoPilot AI. You can do this with either a USB cable or via ssh. See https://echomav.github.io/docs/Rev1/echopilot_ai/#accessing-the-jetson-via-the-console for additional information.
To verify you have internet connectivity, use
ping 8.8.8.8
All software dependencies will be installed automatically by during make install assuming you have an internet connection.
To perform an initial install, first gain console and internet access per links above, then clone the repository. Issue the following commands:
git clone https://github.com/echomav/mavlink-router.git /tmp/mavlink-router
then install:
make -C /tmp/mavlink-router install
The default confguration will have the FMU data arriving on /dev/ttyTHS1 at 500,000 bps and sending to the UDP endpoint at 10.223.1.10:14550. To configure mavlink-router with different settings, edit the self-documented configuration file /etc/mavlink-router/main.conf, for example using nano as shown below:
sudo nano /etc/mavlink-router/main.conf # Use Ctrl-o, Ctrl-x to save/exit
Reboot the system sudo reboot to ensure user permissions are applied. The mavlink-router service will start automatically on the next boot using the settings in the /etc/mavlink-router/main.conf file.
Optional, if you wish to set up a static IP address on the EchoPilot AI, with the address automatically derived from the last two octects of the eth0 interface's MAC address, run:
make -C /tmp/mavlink-router static
Be sure to make not of the static IP address assigned at the end of the installation script.
Optional, if you wish to install both mavlink-router AND set up a static IP address, you can use the default make target to do both with one command:
make -C /tmp/mavlink-router
Mavlink-router will be installed as a system service, and will start automatically (see /lib/systemd/system/mavlink-router.service) at boot using the configuration defined in /etc/mavlink-router/main.conf.
To edit the configuration file
sudo nano /etc/mavlink-router/main.conf # Use Ctrl-o, Ctrl-x to save/exit
To stop the service:
sudo systemctl stop mavlink-router
To start the service:
sudo systemctl start mavlink-router
To restart the service:
sudo systemctl restart mavlink-router
This most common and simplest configuration method is for mavlink-router to be a UDP client. In the main.conf file, enter the IP address of the computer on your network running the GCS software (QGroundControl or MissionPlanner recommended). Using the default settings, set your computer's IP address to 10.223.1.10 with a netmask of 255.255.0.0.
[UdpEndpoint alpha]
Mode = Normal
Address = 10.223.1.10 # Change this to your GCS's IP Address
Port = 14550
Both QGroundControl and MissionPlanner will accept UDP connections on port 14550 by default (no specific configuration required). If you have any firewalls in your system, you will need to allow access to port 14550.
The included static-network.sh utility can be used standalone as a helper script to set up a static ip address on the EchoPilot AI, which is the preferred setup for many/most UAS applications. When using make static above, this script is called with the following arguments: ./static-network.sh -i eth0 -a auto.
The general script usage is:
./static-network.sh -i interface_name -a ip_addres|auto -g gateway_address(optional)
Passing auto to the -a argument uses the specified interface's MAC address as a way to form a unique static IP address. The last two octets of the MAC address are converted to decimal and used for the last two octets of the IP address. For example, if the MAC address is 34:73:5a:e8:57:3f, the last two octets 57:3f will convert (hexadecimal to decimal) to 87.63 and the static IP will be set to 10.223.87.63. When using -a auto, the netmask /16 (255.255.0.0) is used.
You can also specify a specific static IP address as well as a gateway address. For example:
./static-network.sh -i eth0 -a 192.168.1.100/24 -g 192.168.1.1
The command above would set eth0's address to 192.168.1.100 with a 255.255.255.0 netmask and a gateway of 192.168.1.1. Normally the Ethernet interface (-i argumment) on Jetson devices is called eth0, however if you wish to use this script to configure a different interface, you can see the names of you system's interfaces with the commannd below and the pass the appropriate interface name to the -i argument:
ip link show
The static-network.sh also creates a backdoor VLAN at 192.168.154.0/24 which can be used to access the device if you no longer know the static IP address or do not have serial/usb console access. To use this backdoor, set up a host computer to an IP in the same netmask, e.g. 192.168.154.10 with a netmask of 255.255.255.0 and then you can access the device at 192.168.154.0, for example ssh echopilot@192.168.154.0.
This backdoor/configuration IP address is designed to be used during configuration only and should never be used when more than one EchoPilot AI is on the network.